New to kayaking DP
 

Hey guys, new to kayak fishing here out of DP. Been out only a handful of times so far and have not ventured far out of the harbor yet. I'm looking for some tips on where to go, where to catch bait, etc..

I'm fishing off a Malibu Stealth 12 that I've almost got rigged to my liking, although everytime I go out I find something else I want to add or change. I plan on spending quite a few weekends getting comfortable out on the water and learning some new stuff.

Cheers!

I forget who posted this but I saved it to my desktop. Hopefully it can help you out.


The Pipe- A reef structure that extends from the "rivermouth" at Doheny to the area that it dumps in about 90 ft deep. The area that it dumps in is almost directly west of the tip of the long jetty but for the most part is is just slightly south of the harbor. Right now it is easy to find. Go to the red buoy in front of Doheny, then look south west. It will be littered with lobster Buoys. Those buoys are a good place to start, but make sure you are either directly on the structure, or on the same side of the structure that the fish are on. 30-60 ft has always been the most productive for me. There is a nice section in 40 ft of water, that the reef comes up to about 25 ft that has been good to me, but it is the most snaggy bottom I've ever seen. Be prepared to lose alot of tackle in this area. It can be costly, but worth every penny.

The Headlands- The area just west of the Dana Point Bluff, near the red Buoy. There is lots of hard bottom and kelp. Fish tight to the kelp that is visible on the surface. A few reefs marked by buoys in the area as well. The headlands is a generic area that is pretty big. In regard to how people refer to it, it is the equal to La Jolla's "In front of the Condo". Nothing special needed. Fish the right structure at the right time, you might catch a fish. Conditions rule here.

Doheny- The beach just South of the harbor. Sandy bottom with sporadic kelp. I typically fish this area from 5 - 40 ft deep. Halibut move around so I don't have any GPS coodinates. Pound as much sand near structure as you can in this area and you will scratch a fish or two. There are a few reefs in the area that are visible on a negative low tide. Mark them on that low tide, and fish them on the next high tide. The area in front of the "rivermouth" can be productive if the conditions are good. Keep going south and you will fish the Capo reefs. Capo reefs are directly in front of Capistrano Beach. The wind there usually blows south, so don't get caught south when that turns on.

Salt Creek- A long substantial kelp bed directly in front of Salt Creek beach. It is a long paddle, several miles, but can be productive at times. Generally, fish in 50- 70 feet of water, on the west side of the kelp. The fish like it very tight to the structure there, so if you are getting snagged and losing lots of rigs, you are in the right spot. I'd like to give you GPS numbers, but the reality is that it is about a 1 mile stretch of beach that has kelp. Fish it near the kelp at the right time, you can catch a fish. It is a long paddle to get a skunk from though. The current can go VERY slack there. If there is no current, move to another spot south. North of Salt Creek is the Laguna MPA. I hated to lose that the most.

Great advice, but I'm pretty sure there aren't any lobster buoys out there

google earth is your friend and your limited to you peddle or paddle abilities.

on catching bait:
1) bait barge. Bring $15 for bait and tip (the new standard)
2) take a sibiki rig. I seem to have good luck around the kelp (where ever it can be found). Smother with hot sauce, uni-butter or tip w. squid. Old trick? take a can of cat food. Pop a couple of holes on each side secure it to a rope and toss it over the side. Wait for bait to come to you.

Good luck out there, I'll probably see you around!

Thanks for posting that info on where to go, and also those bait tips sound good.


I think I'm going to spend some time perfecting my bait catching and probably fish alot around Doheny before I venture further out. It sounds like the headlands may be within my reach pretty soon. The same goes for closer reaches of the Pipe if it starts near the river (drainage) mouth.


I'm kind of worried about heading down to Salt Creek due to possible wind picking up and ending up getting stuck down there somewhere because of a long upwind battle.


Hope to meet some of you out there sometime.

lots of good info.also use weedless leadheads in the kelp

I heard the guy that wrote that info about Dana is incredibly good looking :cool:

He talks a good game but can he fish?

Anybody can fish. It's catching them that counts.